Week 232 Menu

Happy Monday everyone!  We just got back from a vacation in Colorado.  It was beautiful!  We played in sand dunes, hiked by rivers, waterfalls and lakes.

Now we're back to normal life, still perfecting our summertime routine.  So, it's menu planning time!

Monday: Quick Pesto Pasta, 1 Hour Breadsticks


Tuesday: Orange Chicken, jasmine rice, veggies


Wednesday: Turkey Meatball Sandwiches


Thursday:  Grilled Lime Coconut Chicken with Coconut Rice

Friday: Fajita Salad

Saturday: homemade pizza, maybe Chicken Caesar Pizza

 

Sunday: Broiled Parmesan Tilapia, simple orzo pilaf

What's on your menu this week?  Have a great one!

P.S.  Need more menu inspiration?  Check out my other #231 weeks of menu ideas. 

10 Minute Popsicles

It's summer and time for popsicles!

My fabulous sister-in-law, Melinda, gave us a really fun Christmas gift this last year - a Zoku popsicle maker.

 

My kids have had so much fun with it!  You just freeze the base (I just leave mine in the freezer all the time) and then pour in whatever liquid you want and it makes popsicles in 10 minutes.

The other day the kids made rootbeer float popsicles.  We mixed up a little root beer and vanilla ice cream in a cup and poured it in the Zoku.  The kids said they were delicious!  They didn't share with me...

Yum!  And you can make up to 9 popsicles before the Zoku base needs to be refrozen. That's a great thing for my family of 6! 

 

Another of a our favorite is a simple lemonade popsicle.  We've also tried chocolate milk, orange juice and apple juice.  So many more possibilities!

We also love to use our simple little popsicle tray from Target.  I blogged about it back in 2009.

What are your favorite frozen treats?  Do you make popsicles at your house? 

Chicken Caesar Salad Wraps

Do you have a bottle of Caesar dressing open in your fridge?  Maybe you bought it to make this BBQ Caesar Grilled Chicken?  That's perfect, because then you can make these delicious wraps. 

 

We had these wraps for dinner and multiple lunches a few weeks ago.  I marinated some chicken in the fridge overnight in some Caesar dressing.  Then I grilled it and sliced it up and kept it in the fridge, so it was ready to toss into these yummy wraps. 

Sometimes I freeze a bunch of chicken in Caesar dressing, so it's already marinated and ready to go when I need it.

I made a big Caesar salad and then topped it with chicken and fresh parmesan cheese and wrapped it up into a tortilla.  My 9 year old daughter raved about how good they were and asked for more! 

Can't be any harder than this, add whatever veggies you have in the fridge.  Tomato would be yummy in it too.  These uncooked tortillas that you can get at Costco or Sam's Club would be yummy to wrap it all up in. 

Chicken Caesar Salad Wraps

Ingredients

• boneless skinless chicken breasts
• 1/3 c. Caesar dressing
• any kind of lettuce, washed and torn into pieces
• spinach, washed and torn into pieces
• cucumbers, chopped
• Caesar dressing to taste
• croutons
• fresh parmesan, grated
• flour tortillas  

1. Marinate chicken in Caesar dressing overnight or at least an hour. Grill chicken until cooked through. Slice chicken into bite-sized pieces.              
2. In separate bowl, combine any kind of lettuce or spinach (washed and torn into pieces), chopped cucumbers, and a handful of croutons. Toss with Caesar dressing (as much as you like).                
3. Layer prepared salad onto flour tortilla, top with chicken, and sprinkle with freshly grated parmesan cheese. Wrap the tortilla up and enjoy!        

Week 231 Menu

Today is our first day of summer vacation!  I'm excited to have my kids home.  They are such special little people and I love to be with them.  We're trying to get back into our summer routine of chores first and then play.  Hopefully it will be a tiny bit warmer so it's not so cold when we go to the pool.

It's nice and smoky outside from two nearby wildfires.  It reminds me too well of two summers ago when we were evacuated because of a fire and then smelled smoke for weeks afterward.  Praying for rain!

Meals needs to be easy to prep this week, so here goes...menu time.

Monday: tacos made with homemade taco seasoning

Tuesday: bistro chicken, garlic mashed potatoes

Wednesday: subs made on homemade French bread, w/turkey, swiss, avocado, etc.

Thursday: honey lime enchiladas

Friday: orange chicken, steamed rice and veggies

Saturday: grilled hamburgers

Sunday: tbd...we go to church at 1:00 now instead of 9:00 like we used to, so I need new Sunday dinner ideas since I no longer have all afternoon to cook.  :)

What's on your SUMMER menu this week?  Hooray for summer!

Summer Favorite...Sesame Chicken Salad

I've been revisiting one of my favorite summery meals...Sesame Chicken Salad.  I made a big bowl of it for lunch today. 

It's super easy and yummy!  Plus you can prep it in advance, just don't pour the dressing on until you're ready to eat so the lettuce doesn't get soggy. 

Just boil up some pasta (I used whole wheat penne), wash and cut up some greens (I used spinach and a couple different kinds of lettuce), open a few cans of mandarin oranges, grill some chicken (I had some of this chicken marinating in the freezer), and whip up some easy dressing.  I made this salad today in about 20 minutes. 

Yum!  Find the recipe here.

My Favorite Sloppy Joes

I think I make sloppy joes almost every time we have family come come visit.  It's perfect because it's easy to make a lot and you can prep it ahead and have it warm in the crockpot until it's time to eat.   I've tried a lot of sloppy joe recipes and even used cans of Manwich. 

 

 

This is by far my favorite recipe.  It's sweet and tangy, and super yummy!  And of course it's easy to make.  I found it on Becky Bakes a while ago.  I usually don't follow the recipe amounts exactly.  I just eyeball it.  It always turns out to be delicious.  This is my version. 

 

Sloppy Joes

• 1 lb. ground beef (or ground turkey)
• 1/4 c. or as much as you like onion, diced
• green or red bell peppers, diced (as much as you like)
• 3/4 c. chili sauce (or ketchup or combo of both)
• 2 T. apple cider vinegar
• 2 T. brown sugar
• 1 tsp. dry ground mustard
• 3/4 tsp. chili powder

Directions

1. Brown ground beef or turkey in skillet along with diced onions and peppers. Drain grease from meat, if any. 
2. Add chili sauce, vinegar, brown sugar, dry mustard and chili powder. Let simmer for 15-20 minutes. Or heat in crockpot on low until you're ready to serve.